Eliza Cruse from London to Sydney

I have been busy sorting through another batch of information which was sent to me in the post by David Cruse. His latest collection relates mostly to the various London Cruse lines. Amongst David's files was some correspondence from the Archives Office of New South Wales dating from 1988 concerning an Eliza Cruse who emigrated to Australia in 1872. David had initially written to New South Wales enquiring about a Mary Cruse who was listed in the indexes to the 'Assisted immigrants arriving in Sydney, 1860-79'. However when the archivist checked the records it transpired that the records related not to Mary Cruse but to Eliza Cruse. The online indexes have not been corrected so if anyone has been looking for Eliza they will probably not have been able to find her emigration records.

The papers supplied by the NSW Archives show that Eliza Cruse sailed from London to Australia on the Canning, arriving at Moreton Bay, Sydney, on 8th January 1873. Eliza was described as a housemaid aged 23. Her native place was St. Pancras, London, and her parents were William and Sarah. Her mother was living in Bloomsbury, London. She was a member of the Church of England and could read and write. She had no relations in the Colony, and she was of good 'bodily health'. I had no record of Eliza in my database but with a little help from the censuses and other sources and I was soon able to reconstruct her family.

Eliza was one of ten children born to William Murdock Cruse and Sarah Caster. She was born on 31st July 1849 in St Pancras, London, and was baptised on 7th April 1850 at Old Church, St Pancras. Unfortunately William and Sarah married prior to the beginning of civil registration and I do not currently have any record of their marriage. The family have a variety of interesting occupations. Eliza's father, William, was a bookseller. Her eldest brother George William Cruse (born c. 1837) was a policeman in the Metropolitan Police. Her brother John (born c. 1838) was an attendant at the South Kensington Museum, which I presume is the old name for the Natural History Museum. Her brother Walter (born c. 1840) moved to Gravesend in Kent and became a bookstore clerk. Another brother Edward (born 1845) joined the Royal Navy. The London Cruses all have an uncanny knack of living in unindexed London parishes which are not on the IGI and this family is no exception as they lived for many years in the genealogical black hole of St George's Hanover Square before moving to Brompton in about 1845, and then St Pancras by 1849. In the 1851 census they were living at 12 Greenland Grove, St Pancras. I can find no trace of the family in the 1861 census, and suspect that St Pancras is another one of the London districts which has a number of missing pages. I have also been unable to locate Eliza in the 1871 census. Her mother Sarah can however be found living at 7 Gee Street, Somers Town, St Pancras. She was now widowed, and was described as a retired bookseller. Two of her children seem to have been recruited to carry on the family business: William, 23, was a bookseller's assistant, and Harriet, 19, was a stationer's assistant.

Coincidentally I have recently been working on another London Cruse line with connections to St George's Hanover Square. The George Cruse who married Mary Dickson (see my earlier posting) was born c. 1814 in St George's Hanover Square. We know from his marriage certificate that he was the son of Charles Cruse, a bookbinder. Eliza's father William Cruse was born c. 1811 in St George's Hanover Square, and could well be the brother of George Cruse, especially with the book trade links.

Is there anyone researching the family of William Murdock Cruse and Sarah Caster? Does anyone know what became of Eliza after she emigrated to Australia?

Tiverton marriages

I have received an impressive collection of marriage certificates from the Tiverton Marriage Challenge courtesy of Guild member Barbara Roach. The Tiverton Registration District is a particular hotspot for the Cruwys surname and has the second highest concentration of Cruwys marriages. (South Molton is the district which has the most Cruwys marriages.) Barbara was able to find all but three of the marriages I requested. I have put details of the marriages she found below with a note of the tree, where known, in brackets. I have sent copy certificates to the researchers who are working on the respective trees. If you are interested in any of these marriages and have not received a certificate please get in touch.

- 1848 The Parish Church, Huish Champflower: Isaac Cruwys, labourer (widower), son of John Cruwys, labourer, and Elizabeth Sexson, daughter of Philip Sexson, labourer (Oakford/Wiveliscombe tree)

- 1852 St Peter's Church, Tiverton: James Cruwys, cordwainer, son of George Cruwys, mason, and Maria Davey, daughter of John Davey (occupation not recorded) (Mariansleigh tree)

- 1856 The Parish Church, Stoodleigh: George Cruwys, labourer, son of William Cruwys, and Ann Wilkins, daughter of John Wilkins, labourer (Witheridge tree)

- 1856 The Parish Church, Bradninch: William Cruwys, farmer, son of William Cruwys, farmer, and Mary Anne Wonson, daughter of William Wonson, farmer (Brushford tree)

- 1860 The Parish Church, Brampton: Mary Ann Crews, daughter of Robert Crews, labourer, and Charles Brice, labourer, daughter of William Brice, labourer

- 1862 The Parish Church, Halberton: Daniel Cruwys, National Schoolmaster, son of Robert Cruwys, and Susanna Ascott, daughter of Thomas Ascott, wheelwright (Mariansleigh tree)

- 1866 The Parish Church, Blackborough: Elizabeth Crews, daughter of John Crews, labourer, and Charles Radford, scythe stone maker, daughter of William Radford, scythe stone cutter

- 1873 St Peter's Church, Tiverton: Samuel Steer Cruwys, wine merchant, son of Robert Cruwys, and Marion Helen Jamieson, daughter of James Jamieson, wine merchant (Mariansleigh tree)

- 1878 The Parish Church, Uffculme: Sarah Crews, servant, daughter of John Crews, sawyer, and John Lemon, son of William Lemon, labourer.

I was particularly pleased to have the details of the marriage of Samuel Steer Cruwys. As some of you might recall from an earlier posting, Samuel emigrated to Australia after his business went into liquidation. With the details from the certificate I have now been able to establish that his wife Marion stayed behind in England. She re-married in 1894, after Samuel's death in Australia, either to George Frederick Bartlett or William Snow.

Barbara is still working on the final stage of the Tiverton marriage challenge which covers the period from 1880 through to 1910. I have submitted a further nine marriages for this period and I look forward to receiving details in due course, if Barbara is able to locate them in the respective marriage registers.

The Cruwys clan in Tiverton

Kelly Searle has sent me this lovely photograph of her great-grandparents Thomas Edwin James Cruwys (1888-1961) and Edith Baker (1887-1965) with their six sons. Thomas was born in Witheridge, Devon, and is the son of John Cruwys (1860-1919) and Sarah Chown (1851-1921). Thomas and Edith settled in Tiverton after their marriage. The photograph is probably taken in the garden of their house at 56 Council Gardens. Thomas and Edith's youngest son, Sidney, was born in 1926, which would suggest that the photograph dates from the early 1930s. Pictured on the back row (from left to right) are: Victor, Jack (John), Thomas Henry, and Ernie. In the front row (from left to right) are: Sidney, Edith, Thomas Edwin James, and Charlie. The boys are all looking distinctly grumpy, and were no doubt not amused at the prospect of putting on their ties and Sunday best to have the photograph taken!

Master Tom Cruwys the boy soprano

I bought this lovely old postcard (below) on E-bay. The Master Tom Cruwys in the picture is my great uncle. Tom was born on 18th February 1890 at 169 Ashmore Road, Kilburn, London, the fourth son of Frederick Augustus Cruwys and Emma Gough. This picture was taken in commemoration of the occasion when Tom had the honour of singing at the Alhambra Palace, Leicester Square, London, on Monday 21st November 1904 before H.M. Queen Alexandra, H.R.H. Princess Victoria, and Prince and Princess Louise of Battenburg. At that time the Alhambra was the largest theatre in the world. Tom went on to perform a tour of the north, appearing on stage with Fred Karno and Charlie Chaplin. He subsequently sang at the Queen's Hall in London and St George's Hall in Liverpool. He also played the part of the babe in the ''Babes in the Wood'' pantomime at Crystal Palace.We have an old letter card which I think belonged to my great-grandparents which has a selection of press reviews from the various local newspapers. I have transcribed the reviews below.

Press Opinions

MORNING LEADER, Nov. 19th 1904 – The newest boy singer, Master Tom Cruwys, who appeared this week at the Alhambra in a soprano part, is a remarkably confident and dignified addition to the list of musical boy prodigies of the past season, has a well formed and particular musical range, and reaches his high notes with expression and ease. For so small a performer his voice carries well to the back of the huge hall, and but for his stage personality a listener might easily suppose the vocalist to be an accomplished lady soprano.

THE STAR, Nov. 19th 1904, - The chief event of the week has been the appearance of a new boy singer at the Alhambra, Master Tom Cruwys. He possesses the ordinary range of a soprano, with the same richness and fulness of tone.

LLOYDS NEWS, Nov. 19th 1904, - A charming boy Soprano, Master Tom Cruwys, is an acquisition to this entertainment.

THE ERA, 20th Nov., 1904 – A boy singer, Master Tom Cruwys …..this week at the Alhambra. He has … of sweet quality and remarkable range … his high notes are particularly clear.

LICENSED VICTUALLERS MIRROR, 2nd Dec., 1904 – Master Tom Cruwys has an astonishingly strong, sweet and clear voice of soprano calibre. He gives a really clever rendering of "Il Bacio", and for an encore renders "The Swallows" delightfully.

SOUTHPORT GAZETTE, Feb 11th, 1905 – Master Tom Cruwys, the boy soprano possesses a voice of singular purity and fulness, his upper notes having a splendid roundness of tone. His songs are delivered in cultured style, and the way he surmounted the difficulty of "Sing Sweet Bird" was a triumph of expressive singing, which was renewed in "Mary of Argyle".

SOUTHPORT GRAPHIC February 11th 1905
Master Tom Cruwys, whose picture we give, has made quite a triumph at the Palace this week. This clever little boy has just finished a most successful pantomime engagement at the Crystal Palace this Christmas. His first hit, however, was made at the Alhambra, London, where he had the honour of singing before Her Majesty Queen Alexandra, Her Royal Highness Princess Victoria, and Prince and Princess Louise of Battenberg.

Tom's singing career sadly ended when he was shot through the nose at Thiepval in World War I. Tom served firstly with the Honourable Artillery Company and then, after receiving officer training, joined the Worcestershire Regiment at Vimy Ridge where he was made Captain. He ended up at Passchendaele where he was again severely wounded by gunshot on 31st July.

Tom was also a talented artist and before the war he had studied at the Hammersmith School of Art. After the war Tom became a civil servant at H.M. Office of Works, where he worked on the architectural side. In 1926 he joined Messrs. Trollope and Son, the West End firm of interior decorators, as senior artist. He remained there for five years and then began working for himself. Tom's designs include the ballroom at the Dorchester Hotel, and the staterooms of the Aquitania and Mauritania. Tom struggled to make a career as an artist during the Depression and in 1939 he joined his brother Herbert (my grandfather) in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, where he found employment at Dowty Rotol. In his spare time Tom enjoyed drawing the local Cotswold scenery and churches, and I have a large collection of postcards produced from his wonderfully detailed black and white sketches.

Tom married twice and had two daughters by his first wife Clara Mascord. His younger daughter Mary married Derek Robbins, the World War II veteran. Tom died on 24th October 1963 at 82 Station Road, Bishops Cleeve, Cheltenham.